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Smash Comics Vol 1 20
Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Jud Marshwood * Slyme Other Characters: * Timothy Marshwood * Mr. Marshwood Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer2_1 = Vernon Henkel | Penciler2_1 = Vernon Henkel | Inker2_1 = Vernon Henkel | StoryTitle2 = Wings Wendall: "The Peace-Maker" | Synopsis2 = | Appearing2 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Spinner Antagonists: * Other Characters: * The Peace-Maker * Zaroff * Olga Varick * Steve Conroy Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer3_1 = Jack Cole | Penciler3_1 = Jack Cole | Inker3_1 = Jack Cole | Letterer3_1 = Jack Cole | StoryTitle3 = Midnight: "Chango the Magician" | Synopsis3 = | Appearing3 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Chango Other Characters: * Twitch * Rita Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer4_1 = | Penciler4_1 = Alex Blum | Inker4_1 = Alex Blum | StoryTitle4 = The Purple Trio: "Rocky the Champ" | Synopsis4 = | Appearing4 = Featured Characters: * ** ** ** Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Other Characters: * Joe * Charlie Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer5_1 = Art Pinajian | Penciler5_1 = Art Pinajian | Inker5_1 = Art Pinajian | StoryTitle5 = Invisible Justice: "The Ghost Rider" | Synopsis5 = | Appearing5 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Ghost Rider Other Characters: * Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer6_1 = Lane French | Penciler6_1 = John Celardo | Inker6_1 = John Celardo | StoryTitle6 = Espionage Starring Black X: "Madame Doom Strikes at Sea" | Synopsis6 = A big U.S. warship gets blown up while on strenuous maneuvers in the mid-Pacific. (Note 1) Then a week later another one does, and so do two submarines, and so Black X flies out to a never-named "refueling island" where the sinkings took place, and infiltrates a movie company, as a deep-sea diver, and encounters other deep-sea divers, who turn out to be commanded by the formerly-apparently-dead Madame Doom, who now has a stationary automated torpedo-launcher on the seabed, and has been nailing these ships. (Note 2) Just before the final gunfight, Black X gets captured and tied up but bursts his bonds "with superhuman strength," then there's a shoot-out, at the end of which Black X is on the bridge steering Madame Doom's ship, with her supposedly still aboard it, steaming slowly across the electric eye that activates the launcher; her ship sinks with almost all hands, including a bunch of knocked-out and bullet-wounded enemy thugs. | Appearing6 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Other Characters: * Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer7_1 = Bob Powell | Penciler7_1 = Bob Powell | Inker7_1 = Bob Powell | StoryTitle7 = Abdul the Arab: "The Story of Salome" | Synopsis7 = | Appearing7 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Hassan Antagonists: * Other Characters: * Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer8_1 = Harry Francis Campbell | Penciler8_1 = Harry Francis Campbell | Inker8_1 = Harry Francis Campbell | StoryTitle8 = The Scarlet Seal: "The Sabotaged Chutes" | Synopsis8 = | Appearing8 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Captain Tim Moore Antagonists: * The Panasians Other Characters: * Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer9_1 = Paul Gustavson | Penciler9_1 = Paul Gustavson | Inker9_1 = Paul Gustavson | Letterer9_1 = Paul Gustavson | StoryTitle9 = Magno: "The Framing of Tony Segora" | Synopsis9 = At night, the First National bank gets robbed, and Tony Segora, holding the loot bag, is set up by his own gang, with no car keys and no gun, to get cornered by the police, who shoot him dead. Tom Dalton reads about it the next day, along with the allegation that Segora had bumped off Boss Malone before the bungled robbery, and Tom decides that the published explanation is all baloney. Tom works through the rest of that day, then that night, as Magno, he breaks into the Medical Examiner’s office and finds a report on the death of Boss Malone, who was killed by a round from a .45 long-bore Colt, which isn’t at all like the .38 auto that Tony Segora used to pack. Magno visits the Golden Slipper, one of the late Boss Malone’s hangouts, and beats up a random guy, who turns out to not be one of Malone’s gang, but who pays protection to Malone’s mob. He warns Magno not to go into the bar, because about six gunmen are inside; Magno goes in anyway. He sneaks up on and knocks out one thug (Gimpy), takes his gun, and shoots at the ceiling, which draws out two more thugs from an inner office; he beats them up, then goes in and confronts the new, Mexican boss of Malone’s mob, who throws a dagger at him. Magno deflects the dagger right back at him, pins him to the wall, and grabs two guns off him, and one of them is a .45 long-bore Colt while the other is Tony Segora’s .38. The new boss makes one last stab at fighting Magno, but is thrashed, and punched through a wall, which knocks him out. Magno then turns him over to the police. | Appearing9 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Mike Harvey Antagonists: * Tony Segora * Boss Malone * unnamed Mexican new boss ** several thugs Other Characters: * Locations: * Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer10_1 = Vernon Henkel | Penciler10_1 = Vernon Henkel | Inker10_1 = Vernon Henkel | StoryTitle10 = Chic Carter: "Mongol Menace" | Synopsis10 = | Appearing10 = Featured Characters: * Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Other Characters: * Gordon Bruce * Won Kai * Princess Chin Lu * Chin Lu's father Locations: * Central Items: * Vehicles: * | Writer11_1 = George E. Brenner | Penciler11_1 = George E. Brenner | Inker11_1 = George E. Brenner | StoryTitle11 = Bozo the Robot: "The Building Racketeers" | Synopsis11 = | Appearing11 = Featured Characters: * ** Supporting Characters: * Antagonists: * Other Characters: * Acton Locations: * Vehicles: * | Notes = * Espionage ** 1/ Quality Universe WWII History: Panama, Nicaragua, and Mexico just got invaded, by a not-named "oriental power," back in Smash Comics #16 Nov.40. So four months later, is THAT enemy already defeated? There also were several large-scale naval battles over the Pan-American Caldwell Line back in Smash Comics #7 Feb.40. ** 2/ It takes a crew of deep-sea divers to reload this idiotic torpedo weapon, and it only shoots when a ship sails across one particular spot. Which, in fairness, has already happened at least four times in this story, so the weapon had SOME moxie, but for what it costs to operate, the unidentified bad guys could have laid a dozen minefields. ** 3/ This is Madame Doom's sixth appearance in this series. We never learn or even ask WHO Madame Doom is working for this time around, or HOW she survived her seeming suicide last time around. ** 4/ Batu hasn't done any telepathy since Smash Comics #15 Oct.40. ** 5/ Based on internal and prior timeline evidence in the Black X series, events of this story are thought to have taken place circa 1941-April. * Midnight: ** Chango was Midnight's first super villain. * Also appearing in this issue of Smash Comics were: ** Archie O'Toole: "The Ghost of Old King Ghoul", by John Devlin ** "Just Laugh It Off", by Arthur Beeman ** Wun Cloo: "Gat-the-Rat", by Jack Cole ** "Pharaoh's Daughter" (text story, featuring Jimmy Christian), by Robert M. Hyatt | Trivia = * Alex Blum signed his Purple Trio story as "S.M. Regi." * Art Pinajian signed his work on Invisible Justice as "Art Gordon." * Bob Powell signed his pencil work on Wings Wendall as "Powell Roberts." * George Brenner signed his work on Bozo the Iron Man as "Wayne Reid" * John Devlin wrote and drew this issue's episode of Archie O'Toole but the "Bud Thomas" credit line does not appear. * Harry Campbell signed his Scarlet Seal story as himself. * Lou Fine signed his work on The Ray as "E. Lectron." * Will Eisner signed his work on Espionage as "Will Erwin." | Recommended = | Links = * Read the complete issue at the Digital Comic Museum * Smash Comics #20, March 1941 }}